Ice Comes Early for Astana Hockey Fans

It may only be August, but there's a hint of winter in the air as Astana plays host to a curtain raiser for the upcoming ice hockey season. Barys Astana will compete against teams from Russia, Latvia and Belarus in the inaugural President of Kazakhstan's Cup tournament.

The action begins in the capital’s Kazakhstan Sports Palace on August 10 with Dinamo Riga (Latvia) playing Dinamo Minsk (Belarus) in the afternoon match and home favorites Barys taking on Atlant (Russia) that evening. After further games between the teams on August 11 and 13, the top two teams play off in the final on August 14. The event sponsor is Nur Otan, the political party led by President Nursultan Nazarbayev, which holds all the elected seats in Kazakhstan's parliament.